Heney eilmann



(No Model.) 7 v J.-H. EILMANN.

BOX FASTENER. No. 361,149. v Patented Apr 12, 1887.

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FUCHS, FhuloLiUwgriphuL Washingtcn, D. C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHAN HENRY EILMANN, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR TO JOSEPH WVOLF,OF SAME PLACE.

BOX-FASTENER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 361,149, dated April12, 1887.

' Application filed December 18, 1886. Serial No. 221,906. (No model) Toall whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J OHAN HENRY EILMANN, of Milwaukee, in the county ofMilwaukee, and in the State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Box- Fasteners; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to box-fasteners; and it consists in certainpeculiarities of construction and combination of parts, to behereinafter described with reference to the accompanying drawings, andsubsequently claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 represents a perspective view of'a boxprovided with my fast ener; Fig. 2, a similar view showing a portion ofa box-lid and the application of my'fastener, and Fig. 3 a verticaltransverse section taken through a portion of a box having my fastenerapplied thereto.

Referring by letter to the drawings, A represents the body of a box,such as is ordinarily employed for the transportation of hottled beer,mineral waters, or other beverages, and Bthe lid thereof.

The body A of the box is generally provided with a transversebrace-piece,0, and the lid B with transverse battens D, near its ends,that come inside against the ends and sides of said box-body to preventlongitudinal and lateral play of said lid. By boring with an auger Iprovide'the transverse brace-piece O with aseat or perforation, E,andupon the upper face of this brace-piece I secure by screws F, or othersuitable means, a plate, G, having a central perforation that registerswith the seat or perforation in said bracepiece, but is of lessdiameter. Passed through the perforation in the plate G,to come withinIf found more desirable, a collar or suitable lugs may be employedinplace of the pin K. Either of the last-named devices answer the samepurpose as said pin, and in some instances it might befound preferableto cast such a collar or the lugs integral with stem of the latch-piece.

A central opening, M, of suitable diameter, is made in the lid B of thebox,and secured by screws or other suitable means to the under side ofthis lid, so as to close the central opening therein, is a plate, N,provided with a slot, 0, at right angles to the central brace-piece, O,of the body portion A of said box. The slot 0 in the plate N has a widthsufficient to per mit the passage, of the horizontal head I of theT-shaped latch-piece, and this slot has central semicircularenlargements, O, for the passage of the vertical stem of saidlatch-piece. At right angles to the slot 0 therein the top of the plateN is provided at one side, near the. circumference of the opening M inthe boxlid B, with an eye or staple, P, that acts as a stop, and on theopposite side with a lug, Q, the latter being preferably inclined uponits upper face, as best illustrated by Fig. 2. g

In the operation of my invention, before'the lid B is put on the bodyportion A of the box, the T-shaped latch-piece is turned so that itshead and a portion of its stem will pass through the slot 0 in the plateN, secured to the under side of said lid. The lid being in place, the

latch-piece is turned so that its head will stand at right angles to theslot in the plate N, and the respective ends of this head come againstthe eye or staple P and vertical face of the lug Q. on said plate, asillustrated by Figs. 2 and 3. The spring L serves to keep the head ofthe latch-piece down tight upon the plate N on'the box-lid, and thus thelatter is firmly fastened on the body portion of said box without theuse of nails or screws.

To prevent the contents of the box from being tampered with byunauthorized parties after the lid is fastened in place, a wire orstrip, S, is passed through the eye or staple P on the plate N and theadjacent head I of the latch piece, and secured by a seal, It, as shownIOO' ployed to cover the central opening in the boxlid, and thus hidethe fastener. To remove the lid B, the seal R is broken and thelatchpieee is drawn up until the lugQ on the plate N is cleared. Thelatch-piece is now turned to bring its head I into register with theslot 0 in the plate N, and the lid is free to belifted off the bodyportion of the box.

In either fastening or unfastening the box the operationis very simple,and the fastener has no complicated or delicate parts liable to get outof order.

Though I have described the latch-piece as being fitted in a centralcross-brace of the box and the plate Nas centrally located on theboxlid, if found more desirable, this latch-piece may be fitted in anend or side of the body portion of said box, and the plate Ncorrespondingly located at an end or side of the lid.

It is obvious that the staple or stop P and lag Q may be secureddirectly to the box-lid and the opening M and plate N omitted, said lidin this instance being directly provided with the slot 0 for the passageof the latchpiece. Such construction, though practical, is notpreferable, as I desire to keep the latchpiece below the surface of thelid, so as to be out ofthe way when the box is stored or shipped.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A box body provided with a pivotal spring latch-piece comprising avertical stem and a horizontal head having downwardlyprojecting lugs,and the box-lid providedwith a slot for the passage of the latch-head,and stops arranged in the path of said head at right angles to the slot,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. A box-body provided with a pivotal spring latch-piece, a verticalstem, and horizontal head having downwardly projecting lugs, and thebox-lid provided with a suitable opening, a slotted plate secured to theunder side of said lid to cover the opening therein, and the upper faceof this plate provided on one side with a staple and on the other sidewith a lug, said staple and lug being arranged in the path of thelatch-head at right angles to the plate-slot, and a suitablesealing-strip uniting the staple with the adjacent offset portion ofsaid latch-head, substantially as set forth.

3. A box-body provided with a transverse brace-piece bored out to form aseat or perforation, a suitable plate secured to the upper face ofthebrace-piecc and provided with aperforation that registers with thebored-out portion of said bracepiece, but has a smaller diameter thanthe latter, a latch-piece having a vertical stein that projects intosaid boredout portion of the brace-piece, and a horizontal head providedwith downwardly-projccting lugs, and a spring arranged on the stem ofthe latch-piece to bear against the brace-piece plate, in combinationwith the box-lid having a' suitable opening, a plate secured to theunder side of the lid to cover the opening therein and provided with aslot for the passage of the latch-head, a stop arranged on one side ofthe latter plate at right angles to the slot therein, and an inclinedlug similarly arranged on the opposite side of said plate, substantiallyas set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand, atMilwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of \Viseonsin, in thepresence of two witnesses.

JOHAN HENR Y EILM ANN.

Vitnesses:

S. S. STOUT, N. E. OLIIIIANI.

